I read an article recently about how to wake up smiling. I no longer have social media accounts, which helps me be happier, but I still tend to doom-scroll through Apple News on a regular basis. I don’t want to ignore the problems in the world, yet I don’t want to be dragged into a negative spiral where I can’t help.

The article had some good tips including starting the day on a positive note. The writer suggested thinking, “Today is going to be a great day!”. That one didn’t resonate with me, because life is complicated and often it’s not great. Instead, I have chosen, “Something beautiful is going to happen today.” Then I look for the beautiful thing.

How you define beauty is up to you. For me, it’s something kind, something happy, or something that makes the world a little brighter. And you know what? It’s easy to find beautiful things throughout the day. Sometimes it’s huge, like a medical test result coming back with good results or Kansas voters protecting women’s health. Sometimes it is small, like your 16-year-old cat curling up next to you on the sofa.

When you look for beauty, you will realize that even on the worst days it is all around you.